Linking Participation and Economic Advancement

What constitutes meaningful participation in the economic sphere and how
it might be enabled? In this project IDS will draw upon and expand its
rich experience at the forefront of thinking about participation in
development, and our emerging work at the intersection of participation and
markets. We will co-create along with the Economic Advancement Program (EAP) at the Open
Society Foundations (OSF), a deeper understanding of participation in economic
advancement in general, as well as how EAP can bring participatory approaches
into its own practice.

We will do this through two
intersecting workstreams (WS1 and WS2), as follows:

WS1 - Building an evidence base for
participation in economic advancement

Through mapping and co-inquiry with EAP
and its partners and others in this field, we will identify existing
initiatives and experiences of how meaningful participation and engagement of
economically disenfranchised people can occur - and challenges be overcome - in
areas such as economic investment, economic policymaking, creation of economic
alternatives, and the transformation of economic systems that perpetuate
vulnerability.

Starting with mapping of
existing practices, and through co-inquiry with OSF and partners, we will
support EAP to build knowledge and skills to put into practice its commitment
to participation and engagement of beneficiaries in its own programming through
the stages of diagnosis and program design, implementation, and monitoring,
evaluation and learning (MEL).

Open Call

IDS and the Open Society Foundations
(OSF) are working to identify exciting economic alternatives: ways that
enterprises, communities and societies are making economic decisions in which
‘ordinary’ people have a real voice.

The key to the research is not only
about understanding economic alternatives, but those that have a strong
participatory element.

In particular, we want to understand participation in
three areas:

Alternative forms of economic
management that enable workers, consumers, communities, farmers, for example,
to have a voice.

Citizen voice in government economic
policy-making

Grassroots economic alternatives
where people claim ownership over economic processes that affect their lives

In the past months we have been
collecting well-known cases to understand how meaningful participation happens. See our map below for a snapshot of the cases identified so far.

We are now seeking support to identify innovative examples in less familiar
contexts.

Can you help us?Are you aware of examples where
people are empowered to have a say in their economic future? Or would you
recommend colleagues who might?

We are calling on practitioners and
other experts to contribute to the uncovering of examples and surfacing new
learning. The overall aim is to shed light on these interventions and to learn
from them, helping to frame future interventions.

How to contribute

IDS would like to receive your
cases/examples – please email us (below) or share an example via our online form:

Here’s why you should be
participating in this process:

It supports research, practice, grant-making
and investment towards economies that promote social justice

It’s an opportunity to contribute to
a shared understanding of what meaningful participation in the economic sphere
looks like – with examples that will be
publicised through IDS and linked to OSF

It is a chance to engage with others with
shared interests and to keep in touch regarding the outcomes of the project.